About the creator
2025 ECCC. Do not take anything too seriously. Especially not a photograph opportunity.
Hand drawn 24 x 36 map of the Disputed Territory in the Republic of Texas, circa 1845.
My first attempt at conveying the magic of distilled spirits in the world of Disputed. Created using Procreate for Episode 3.
Michael Hinson: Writer, Artist, World-Builder
Every story has a source, and The Disputed began with mine.
This article walks through my background in art, the evolution of my spiritual life, and the unusual path that led me to create a supernatural western saga unlike anything I’ve seen. It includes how drawing a map became an act of remembrance, how whiskey turned into a doorway, and how unexpected friendships from around the world have helped breathe life into this vision. What emerged is more than fiction, it’s a mirror. A way of seeing. Not a religion. Not a doctrine. Just a living story that wants to be remembered.
A Life in Art. Personal and Professional
Since I could hold a pencil, I’ve been sketching the unknown — faces, still life, landscapes, surreal characters I’d meet long before I’d know their names. That early spark led me into a lifelong journey with visual storytelling.
Professionally, I’ve worked across illustration, graphic design, branding, and storytelling frameworks. I’ve helped shape everything from multi-million dollar proposals to underground comics. My tools of choice include Procreate, CorelDraw, Illustrator, InDesign, and Photoshop, but it’s the feeling behind the work that always mattered most. Presence, symbolism, memory.
A Spiritual Story Emerging
In parallel, my spiritual journey began taking root. Not in any one dogma, but in an urge to understand what we are beyond the surface. That took me into metaphysics, Eastern philosophy, quantum mechanics, and the subtle science of energy.
What I began to notice is how story, spirit, and science all orbit a central idea: awareness.
The idea that time isn’t what we think. That ghosts aren’t just superstition. That the breath we carry (the spiritus) is a bridge to something beyond.
Drawing the Map... and Finding the Territory
The Disputed Territory was first just a name on an old Texas map. But as I began sketching it out, something stirred. The land itself became metaphor. A place caught between claims. A mirror to the soul.
Characters like Jack and the gang appeared. Mortimar followed. Not a ghost, not a god, but a shapeshifting mirror between worlds. I wasn’t creating the world as much as uncovering it. The more I followed that feeling, the more the pieces came together.
The Spirits... and the Science Behind Them
The idea that distilled spirits could be used spiritually was not just clever metaphor... it opened a whole system. Whiskey, gin, rum, tequila, each carrying both a shadow and a healing property. Each tied to inner demons, human vices, and our potential for transformation. This wasn’t just folklore. It echoed quantum field theory, ancient alchemy, and even modern trauma science. The more I mapped it, the more it lined up. Story as science, emotion as vibration, spirit as movement.
Collaborations, Doorways, and the Power of Remembrance
Through this journey, new friendships formed. Artists, mystics, creators from across the globe found resonance with this work. It felt like remembering something together. Like I wasn’t alone in this strange territory after all.
This story keeps unlocking doors. Personally. Creatively. Even in business and how I see community. The future, I believe, is built not on new tech or new empires — but remembrance. We are remembering ourselves, through story.
A Closing Word.
This work isn’t here to challenge your beliefs. It’s not a gospel. It’s not trying to overwrite your faith, or push a philosophy. It’s simply a way to look inward. To look through the veil. To ask questions and let wonder breathe again.
The Disputed is a story, sure... but also a living metaphor. If you’re willing, it may show you something you forgot you knew.
I built this not to tell you what to believe, but to offer a mirror. To remind us both that presence is our power. That connection is still sacred. That story can heal what separation created.
If something in you resonates, this space is for you.
